Hockey writers can cast ballots on most—not all—NHL awards. SN's Jesse Spector gave you a look at what he'd do for the Vezina and Adams. I'll stick with the players I actually could choose—and the guys I didn't; that was difficult enough.

Sidney Crosby finished four points out of the scoring title despite missing the last 11 games of the season. (AP Photo)

Hart Trophy (MVP)

Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins. This was unbelievably hard. Does overall skill and productivity win out? Does a player who makes a bad team mediocre deserve more credit than someone who makes a good team great? What is value? Who are we, really? What does it mean to be human? Are we merely an amalgam of the choices we make? IS TIME TRAVEL POSSIBLE?

Anyway, all of the top candidates are flawed. Ovechkin was invisible for the first month of the season. Tavares' team relied on him significantly less down the stretch. Bobrovsky doesn't get extra credit for taking the Blue Jackets from awful to not awful. And Crosby, though I'll take the brave stance of calling him the best player in the world, missed almost a quarter of the season—and the Penguins won without him.

Still, I'm going with 87. Cumulatively, he was better in 36 games than virtually everyone else was in 48. And ultimately, the Penguins need him to be great. Don't let their record down the stretch fool you—they operated on the razor's edge without him, from a puck-possession standpoint. So in the end, I voted for the best, most productive player in the game, and one who turns a talented team into a potential juggernaut.

Existential crisis over.

Rest of the ballot:

2) Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals

3) John Tavares, New York Islanders

4) Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets

5) Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

Norris Trophy (defenseman)

Zdeno Chara, Boston Bruins. This was probably tougher than MVP. Sometimes, the best defenseman actually does have the most points. That's not to say points are unimportant—but other metrics have to come into play. Ironically enough, the point leader in 2013, PK Subban, is the guy I might've voted for last season, when he was less offensively productive. In 2013, my vote goes to Chara. No, seven goals and 12 assists this season doesn't stand out. But the other stuff he brings to the table makes him worthy. He plays nearly 25 effective minutes per game, including 3:12 on the league's fourth-best penalty kill. He drives possession despite starting most of his shifts outside the offensive zone. He goes against top competition night in and night out. He deserves this.

Rest of the ballot:

2) Ryan Suter, Minnesota Wild

3) PK Subban, Montreal Canadiens

4) Kris Letang, Pittsburgh Penguins

5) Francois Beauchemin, Anaheim Ducks

Calder Trophy (Rookie of the year)

Brandon Saad, Chicago Blackhawks. In a strong field, I'll go with the guy who held his own on the top line of the league's best team. Yakupov's season-ending explosion was persuasive, though, and Jonas Brodin is Saad's analog—he played great alongside an ultra-talented teammate, in Suter.

Rest of the ballot:

2) Nail Yakupov, Edmonton Oilers

3) Jonas Brodin, Minnesota Wild

4) Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers

5) Brenden Dillon, Dallas Stars

Selke Trophy (defensive forward)

Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins. It's not easy to be a plus-possession player when you start just 42.4 percent of your shifts in the offensive zone. Bergeron's Corsi, a measure of puck possession, was second in the league among forwards with at least 30 games played. That's astounding, and partially because he wins more than 62 percent of his faceoffs. Boston's opponents scored 17 goals when Bergeron was on the ice at even strength, and he averaged 2:12 on the league's fourth-best penalty kill.

Rest of the ballot:

2) Boyd Gordon, Phoenix Coyotes

3) Jay McLement, Toronto Maple Leafs

4) David Backes, St. Louis Blues

5) Marcus Kruger, Chicago Blackhawks

Lady Byng Trophy (Gentlemanly play)

Matt Moulson, New York Islanders. Moulson is super-productive and played more than 19 minutes a night while somehow committing just two minors all season. That seems impossible. He's doing something right.